YouTube

How to Disable Ads on Your YouTube Channel (Mostly)

February 4, 2023 by Stephen 10 Comments

YouTube is essentially the only game in town when it comes to Internet video, with a critical mass of viewers and tight integration with Google search. Back in 2020, Google enabled ads on all YouTube videos, even for publishers who had previously opted out. It is possible to disable ads in videos on your channel, but there are some serious limits. This post explains how to disable ads on your YouTube videos.

How to Automatically Import YouTube and Vimeo Viewer Statistics into Google Docs Spreadsheets

April 19, 2012 by Stephen 5 Comments

It isn’t easy automatically and correctly to grab statistics from many sites, but both YouTube and Vimeo expose this data. The challenge is in correctly parsing and formatting this data for use. Here’s how I do it, and I hope that this helps you with your video statistics collection!

How Many Social Media Marketing Campaigns Fit Into a Mini Cooper?

July 29, 2011 by Stephen 1 Comment

I’ve witnessed quite a few publicity stunts from IT industry companies, many of which include over-the-top videos. But it’s rare to find one that’s actually amusing and informative. That’s why I was so pleased to discover a new video from Symantec on YouTube: It’s silly and fun, well produced, and actually tells us something about data de-duplication! Take a look yourself, and let me know what you think.

You Really Can Have a Complete Backup System Up and Running in 10 Minutes!

May 26, 2011 by Stephen 9 Comments

I recently worked with Druva to produce a series of videos documenting the installation and configuration of InSync. As part of this process, I went through the entire roll out myself using virtual machines and real data. The result was eye-opening: InSync really does install in under 10 minutes!

How To: Use YouTube Without Flash In Desktop Browsers

April 12, 2010 by Stephen Leave a Comment

If you hate Flash-based video players, you’re in luck! YouTube and Vimeo can now be set to HTML5 mode on Chrome and Safari, no longer requiring Flash.

GPS Time Rollover Failures Keep Happening (But They’re Almost Done)

This is week “1111111111” in the GPS system. Tomorrow morning it will roll over to week “0000000000”. How well will various systems handle this change? Not well, judging by what we’ve seen so far!

Ranting and Raving About the 2018 iPad Pro

I remain enthusiastic about the iPad Pro, despite getting a scratched screen and my concerns about durability. It’s a worthy successor to the original and offers enough improvements that I’d recommend the upgrade for just about anyone who uses their iPad for serious work. It’s still not yet a laptop replacement, but this is due more to a lack of desktop-class software for iOS than anything in Apple’s control.

The Rack Endgame: Open Compute Project

September 17, 2014

On reading my thoughts about the evolution of enterprise storage, many pointed out that this looks an awful lot like the Facebook-led Open Compute Project (OCP). This is entirely intentional. But OCP is simply one expression of this new architecture, and perhaps not the best one for the enterprise.

A Watch Guy’s Review of the Apple Watch

April 27, 2015

Is the Apple Watch a personal communication revolution like the iPhone, a well-executed gadget like the Apple TV, or a total miss? Does it mark the end of the the world as we know it for watches? And what’s it like to use one? I’m a watch guy and a gadget guy, so perhaps my perspective will be of some value.

Sony NEX-5 Camera Review

September 15, 2010

The world of photography is like so many others: A vast gulf separates the amateurs and enthusiasts, from equipment to nomenclature to skills. I am decidedly in the amateur camp when it comes to photography, but I recently upgraded to a new compact interchangeable-lense camera, the Sony alpha NEX-5. It is an excellent match for my needs, allowing me to expand my skills and explore more advanced photographic techniques without sacrificing portability and ease of use.

Not All 802.11n Networks Are Alike

July 2, 2011

Buyers of 802.11n wireless network equipment should not assume they will see a great benefit right out of the box. Most will have to enable by hand a high-performance configuration including wide channels and 5 GHz operation. And some client devices may never reach the levels of performance expected by consumers due to hardware limitations.

Why I Am Biased Against FCoE

October 21, 2011

I am biased against FCoE because it’s too new to be blithely and broadly recommended for production enterprise use. That’s all. Yes, the standards are standardized and there are products extant. But that’s not enough for me.

Storage Changes in VMware vSphere 5

July 16, 2011

Once again, VMware added a ton of new storage enhancements to vSphere. With storage rapidly becoming the limiting factor in scalability and performance of virtual machine environments, this is no surprise. Also not surprising is the fact that major features like Policy-Driven Storage and Storage DRS (along with SIOC) are exclusive to “Enterprise Plus” licenses.

How To Keep Your Family Activities In Sync With A Shared Google Calendar

April 18, 2010

Smartphones, computers, and iPads are proliferating in families today. Although my three kids do not (yet) have their own mobile phones, we still have quite a few devices with calendar functions: An iPhone each for me, my wife, and our au pair along with an iPad and a few computers. Using Google Calendar, we have set up an awesome shared calendar to keep all of our activities in sync. Read on for instructions!

Microsoft’s Big Chance to Change

August 23, 2013

It takes a truly-remarkable leader to be willing to kill his old golden geese to make room for a new one; so far, only Apple and Amazon seem willing to forgo continuity in the name of profitable destruction. But new corporate leadership at Microsoft might un-stick the company and awaken the once-innovative Redmond powerhouse. The retirement of Steve Ballmer is welcome news.